Fernando Alonso: « I’m going to have beautiful dreams tonight »
Can Fernando Alonso play the party spoiler tomorrow? The Spanish driver secured a very impressive 5th position on the starting grid fair and square, although helped by the circumstances!
At the wheel of his “modest” Alpine F1 A522, Fernando Alonso continues to achieve impressive results. It was on a track in Singapore, at the crossroads between dry and wet, that he showcased his talent. While Lewis Hamilton dominated the beginning of Q3 by managing to warm up his soft tires before everyone else, it wasn’t Leclerc or Verstappen who managed to beat the Mercedes’ time first, but Fernando Alonso. The Alpine driver then established a provisional pole position, but eventually had to succumb to Charles Leclerc and the three other drivers from the top teams ahead of him.
Excellent under these wet conditions, the double world champion also had the chance to see George Russell and Max Verstappen face difficult qualifying sessions. The two men will start in 8th and 11th place respectively.
(I) I thought I could do better in terms of result when I saw that I was P1 crossing the finish line. I thought that if there was a red flag or something, I could keep this position.
If it were to rain tomorrow on the Singapore track, Fernando Alonso could take advantage and aim for the podium. The former McLaren driver showed his skills in these conditions earlier this year in Canada during the qualifying session. Alonso had secured an impressive second position. However, if the race remains dry, it is unlikely that the Asturias native will be able to overtake the drivers ahead of him without any incidents. The Alpine car is approximately 1.6 seconds slower than the Ferraris in Singapore. This significant gap in pace makes it highly unlikely to compete on equal terms with the top three teams on the grid.
« I am very happy with this fifth position. On dry conditions, it couldn’t have been better, so we clearly optimized the conditions and it allows us to have a good position on the grid. We are only two positions away from the podium, so I’m going to have sweet dreams tonight. »
No matter the outcome of his race tomorrow, Alonso will further etch his name into the record books. The Spaniard will become tomorrow the Formula 1 driver with the most starts (350). He was previously tied with Kimi Räikkönen.
